I am a beginning weightlifter who is currently around 20%bf. I noticed at my last meet that the guys in my weightclass were all much more muscular and leaner than I am. Since you come from a weightlifting and bodybuilding background I thought you would have unique insight to this problem. My question is how should I plan my eating so that I can still train and make progress in snatch, clean and jerk, squat, etc but at the same time get leaner?
Eat sensibly (quality, quantity)
Proper workout nutrition
Supplements to fill nutritional gaps.
Potentially, energy expenditure work.
See the Boring But Big article for a fairly good and simple diet - then cut down the quantity.
If your lifts aren’t progressing, more carbs.
If you are putting weight on, cut the food back.
Adjust your nutrition based upon what happens throughout your diet. What works for you now may not in a month. So make the required changes but be smart, don’t panic and change everything. Small consistent changes have the most dramatic long term results. You should probably apply this principle to your initial diet changes.
If you are putting weight on and not progressing, may God have mercy on you.
“Eat for performance.” - CT
I’m not someone who likes to discuss diet (go read of my latest “Daily thought” in my Micro-PA log).
What I recommend is keeping carbs fairly high pre and after workout (ideally with PLAZMA pre and during workouts) and stay low carbs (meat and green veggies) the rest of the day.
I also suggest adding loaded conditioning work. In 1999 (I think) I want to drop down TWO weight classes (well from a light 105 to a full 85), I went low carbs with about 100g of carbs around workouts and also added sled pulling (no prowler back then… but the prowler could be used) daily. I was able to make the 85, I was actually 83 in 8 weeks.
My snatch strength stayed the same, C&J went down only 5kg